Written by Naima Small

_{Mumia’s community at 7th and Wallace.}

Journalist and activist Mumia Abu–Jamal grew up in the housing community located at 7th and Wallace Streets in North Philadelphia. At the age of 14, Abu–Jamal protested a rally for Alabama Governor George Wallace’s 1968 presidential campaign. He also became involved in the Black Panther Party, eventually helping to start the Philadelphia chapter in 1968. Abu–Jamal began his career in journalism in 1975 by commentating on social issues on various radio stations around the country. One issue he was particularly passionate about was the police’s unjust treatment of the pro–Black radical organization MOVE. For example, Abu–Jamal frequently wrote about the 1978 confrontation of the MOVE organization with the police, in which nine members (known as the MOVE 9) were arrested and eventually imprisoned for the murder of a police officer. He continually spoke out against former Police Commissioner and Mayor Frank Rizzo’s harsh and violent policing tactics that explicitly targeted Black individuals. His efforts led to him being elected the president of the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists by the early 1980s. 

Abu–Jamal’s work made him a target for the Philadelphia police. In 1982, Abu–Jamal was arrested, charged with the first–degree murder of police officer Daniel Faulkner, and sentenced to death. Abu–Jamal, and many other activists and supporters, maintain that he has been falsely accused and imprisoned due to his radical beliefs, advocacy for the MOVE 9, and the criminal justice system’s unfairness.  

_{Save Mumia poster.}

Four decades later, many continue to advocate for his release, leading to the media designating him as “one of the most famous prisoners in the world” and his case “a symbol for the flaws in the American criminal justice system.” Though his death sentence was dismissed in 2001, he remains unjustly imprisoned in 2022 and continues to write books and essays on the criminal justice system and other social causes. Some of his best–known works include 1995’s Live from Death Row and Have Black Lives Ever Mattered? in 2017. He wrote in his 2004 book, Death Blossoms: Reflections from a Prisoner of Conscience, “When you don’t oppose a system, your silence becomes approval, for it does nothing to interrupt the system… Many people say it is insane to resist the system, but actually, it is insane not to.” 

Recently, activists and community members have been advocating for a street to be named after Mumia Abu–Jamal in the community he was raised in. These efforts have been met with pushback from city officials, but many continue to advocate for Abu–Jamal to be commemorated, especially due to the lack of monuments or murals of Black individuals within the city of Philadelphia. For example, a mural of Edgar Allen Poe, a white poet who is not from the 7th and Wallace housing community, sits at the 7th and Green Street corner of the community. Despite local support, no mural, street sign, or other formal form of recognition is currently being put up for Mumia Abu–Jamal at 7th and Wallace. 

_{Free Mumia and abolish the death penalty poster.}

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Bibliography

Abu-Jamal, Mumia. “Death Blossoms: Reflections From a Prisoner of Conscience.” Internet Archive. 1997.

Abu-Jamal, Mumia. “Have Black Lives Ever Mattered?” Amazon. 2017.

Cox, Amanda K. “Mumia Abu-Jamal.” Britannica.

Meyer, Katie. “40 Years After Mumia Abu-Jamal’s Arrest, The Case Is ‘A Symbol’ of a ‘Broken’ Justice System.” WHYY. 2021.

Patterson, Vanessa Leanne. “Mumia Abu-Jamal (1954- ).” BlackPast. 2010.